Oops. Awkward.

The problem with considering oneself "blessed" or "thanking the Lord" for having survived a natural disaster is that it carries an unspoken implication about those that didn't survive. Did God choose not to "bless" them by allowing them to die?

Of course expressing gratitude is a beautiful thing. But I firmly believe that God's orientation and intent was the same towards those who survived and those who didn't, and towards believers and atheists like Rebecca Vitsmun (the woman being interviewed by Wolf Blitzer). It is an orientation of deeply relational love. God journeys with us through the good times and the bad--feeling what we feel and seeking to make something good and redemptive out of even the most horrific circumstances.

More on this: http://www.salon.com/2013/05/22/tornado_survivor_to_wolf_blitzer_sorry_im_an_atheist_i_dont_have_to_thank_the_lord/